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Sublime Blue: Selected Early Odes by Pablo Neruda
A translation of Pablo Neruda’s early collections of odes, this book features poems that are addressed to hope and to gloom, to numbers and to the atom, to blue flowers and to artichokes. Reflecting the lucent, candid vitality driving Neruda’s charming accounts, these poems celebrate things big and the even lamentations become commemorations. Compassionately amused one moment then sobered by injustice and supportive of resistance the next, this bilingual compilation will appeal to fans of one of the 20th century’s most popular poets.
84 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
10 people are currently reading
142 people want to read
About the author
Pablo Neruda
1,093 books9,674 followersPablo Neruda, born Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto in 1904 in Parral, Chile, was a poet, diplomat, and politician, widely considered one of the most influential literary figures of the 20th century. From an early age, he showed a deep passion for poetry, publishing his first works as a teenager. He adopted the pen name Pablo Neruda to avoid disapproval from his father, who discouraged his literary ambitions. His breakthrough came with Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada (Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair, 1924), a collection of deeply emotional and sensual poetry that gained international recognition and remains one of his most celebrated works.
Neruda’s career took him beyond literature into diplomacy, a path that allowed him to travel extensively and engage with political movements around the world. Beginning in 1927, he served in various consular posts in Asia and later in Spain, where he witnessed the Spanish Civil War and became an outspoken advocate for the Republican cause. His experiences led him to embrace communism, a commitment that would shape much of his later poetry and political activism. His collection España en el corazón (Spain in Our Hearts, 1937) reflected his deep sorrow over the war and marked a shift toward politically engaged writing.
Returning to Chile, he was elected to the Senate in 1945 as a member of the Communist Party. However, his vocal opposition to the repressive policies of President Gabriel Gonzalez Videla led to his exile. During this period, he traveled through various countries, including Argentina, Mexico, and the Soviet Union, further cementing his status as a global literary and political figure. It was during these years that he wrote Canto General (1950), an epic work chronicling Latin American history and the struggles of its people.
Neruda’s return to Chile in 1952 marked a new phase in his life, balancing political activity with a prolific literary output. He remained a staunch supporter of socialist ideals and later developed a close relationship with Salvador Allende, who appointed him as Chile’s ambassador to France in 1970. The following year, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, recognized for the scope and impact of his poetry. His later years were marked by illness, and he died in 1973, just days after the military coup that overthrew Allende. His legacy endures, not only in his vast body of work but also in his influence on literature, political thought, and the cultural identity of Latin America.
Neruda’s career took him beyond literature into diplomacy, a path that allowed him to travel extensively and engage with political movements around the world. Beginning in 1927, he served in various consular posts in Asia and later in Spain, where he witnessed the Spanish Civil War and became an outspoken advocate for the Republican cause. His experiences led him to embrace communism, a commitment that would shape much of his later poetry and political activism. His collection España en el corazón (Spain in Our Hearts, 1937) reflected his deep sorrow over the war and marked a shift toward politically engaged writing.
Returning to Chile, he was elected to the Senate in 1945 as a member of the Communist Party. However, his vocal opposition to the repressive policies of President Gabriel Gonzalez Videla led to his exile. During this period, he traveled through various countries, including Argentina, Mexico, and the Soviet Union, further cementing his status as a global literary and political figure. It was during these years that he wrote Canto General (1950), an epic work chronicling Latin American history and the struggles of its people.
Neruda’s return to Chile in 1952 marked a new phase in his life, balancing political activity with a prolific literary output. He remained a staunch supporter of socialist ideals and later developed a close relationship with Salvador Allende, who appointed him as Chile’s ambassador to France in 1970. The following year, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, recognized for the scope and impact of his poetry. His later years were marked by illness, and he died in 1973, just days after the military coup that overthrew Allende. His legacy endures, not only in his vast body of work but also in his influence on literature, political thought, and the cultural identity of Latin America.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
December 4, 2015
*8,5/10
8 and a half exploding stars out of 10
...life is a struggle
like a river that advances
and men want to tell me,
to tell you
why they struggle,
and if they die why,
and I go on by
without the time
for so many lives,
I want everyone to live
through my life
and to sing
through my song,
I’m not important,
I haven’t time
for my own affairs,
night and day
I must record everything,
and forget no one.
-Pablo Neruda
Lovely poetry, but mostly his earlier work. I have read even better Neruda, though Neruda at his worst is better than most.
8 and a half exploding stars out of 10
...life is a struggle
like a river that advances
and men want to tell me,
to tell you
why they struggle,
and if they die why,
and I go on by
without the time
for so many lives,
I want everyone to live
through my life
and to sing
through my song,
I’m not important,
I haven’t time
for my own affairs,
night and day
I must record everything,
and forget no one.
-Pablo Neruda
Lovely poetry, but mostly his earlier work. I have read even better Neruda, though Neruda at his worst is better than most.
April 2, 2015
Oh, dark fire, you were not
the one destined to touch me
and rise with my blood
up to my mouth
Now
how can I answer you?
Consume yourself,
don’t wait,
there’s no waiting now
for your lips of moonstone.
Consume yourself,
you in your flame,
I in mine,
and love me
for the love that could not wait for you,
love me for what you and I contain
of blossom or stone:
we will always draw life
from all we did not share:
the shoulder upon which a rose could find no peace,
the flower consumed in its own burning.
the one destined to touch me
and rise with my blood
up to my mouth
Now
how can I answer you?
Consume yourself,
don’t wait,
there’s no waiting now
for your lips of moonstone.
Consume yourself,
you in your flame,
I in mine,
and love me
for the love that could not wait for you,
love me for what you and I contain
of blossom or stone:
we will always draw life
from all we did not share:
the shoulder upon which a rose could find no peace,
the flower consumed in its own burning.
January 8, 2015
Usually Pablo is famous for his love poems ,
But this certain book is a collection of earlier odes made to hope , atom , relentlessness, wine & poverty many such other .
Once you read this book you'll not only revere him for his love poems but for sublime blue as well.
It's a great short beautiful read.
But this certain book is a collection of earlier odes made to hope , atom , relentlessness, wine & poverty many such other .
Once you read this book you'll not only revere him for his love poems but for sublime blue as well.
It's a great short beautiful read.
April 18, 2023
so, so lovely…
ode to hope & ode to restlessness are simply flawless
ode to hope & ode to restlessness are simply flawless
February 27, 2020
what can I even begin to say? it's Pablo Neruda. he's beautiful, he stirs me up violently.
The serene ability of language to soothe, to slow down and make infinite movements of lightness and sunshine, takes me by surprise everytime ; in contrast to the horrendous monstrosity of language that has plagued me all my life. whenever I visualise my brain, I always hear a sizzling sound, melting off the edges, and these Odes wrap it up in bandages.
it makes me want to spit out all the beautiful words I know, wrapped up in blue lilies, but that would be self defeating.
special shout out to Odes to Restlessness and Wine as well as The Invisible Man.
The serene ability of language to soothe, to slow down and make infinite movements of lightness and sunshine, takes me by surprise everytime ; in contrast to the horrendous monstrosity of language that has plagued me all my life. whenever I visualise my brain, I always hear a sizzling sound, melting off the edges, and these Odes wrap it up in bandages.
it makes me want to spit out all the beautiful words I know, wrapped up in blue lilies, but that would be self defeating.
special shout out to Odes to Restlessness and Wine as well as The Invisible Man.
July 29, 2024
One of my favorite poets!!
-From the Invisible Man: "I laugh and I smile when it comes to the old poets, I adore all the poetry they wrote, all the dewmoon-diamond-drops of sunken silver my older brother gathered to improve upon the rose, yet I smile, for always they say 'I,'.... give me all the sorrow of the whole world, I will transform it into hope. Give me all joys, even the most intimate, otherwise how shall they be known? I have to speak of them, give me the struggles of each day because they are my song, and so we will walk together, elbow to elbow, all mankind, my song reunites them: song of the invisible man who sings with all mankind."
-From Ode to the Unwelcome One: "Now how can I answer you? Consume yourself, don't wait, there's no waiting now for your lips of moonstone. Consume yourself, you in your flame, I in mine, and love me for the love that could not wait for you, love me for what you and I contain of blossom or stone: we will always draw life from all we did not share: the shoulder upon which a rose could find no peace, the flower consumed in its own burning."
-From Ode to the Poets of the People: "Natural poets of the earth... from the ancient heart of a people you are born, and it's from there you come by your voices... he was there singing among the dead, Homer was his name or Pastor Perez or Reinaldo Donoso.... these, the poets of my people, wandering poor among the poor, maintained a smile throughout their songs, ironically judging exploiters, relating the misery of the miner and the restless fate of the soldier. These, the poets of my people, guitars battered and eyes skilled at discerning what survives, kept a rose in their song and paraded it through the alleys so that it would be known that life will not always be sad."
-From Ode to Poverty: "Poverty, you followed me through barracks and hospitals, through peace and war. When I fell ill, a knock at the door: It wasn't the doctor; Poverty entered again.... Now, Poverty, I follow you... Alongside every poor person, you will find me singing, under every hospital sheet you will run into my song.... Other poets in times past called you Saint, they venerated your cloak, they fed upon vapors and they vanished. I defy you... I with others, yes others, many others..."
-From Ode to Wine: "Drink, and remember in each drop of gold or cup of topaz or spoonful of purple how autumn worked to fill the vessels with wine, and through the rituals of his concerns let the unsung man learn how to remember the earth and his obligations, how to propagate the canticle of the grape."
-From the Invisible Man: "I laugh and I smile when it comes to the old poets, I adore all the poetry they wrote, all the dewmoon-diamond-drops of sunken silver my older brother gathered to improve upon the rose, yet I smile, for always they say 'I,'.... give me all the sorrow of the whole world, I will transform it into hope. Give me all joys, even the most intimate, otherwise how shall they be known? I have to speak of them, give me the struggles of each day because they are my song, and so we will walk together, elbow to elbow, all mankind, my song reunites them: song of the invisible man who sings with all mankind."
-From Ode to the Unwelcome One: "Now how can I answer you? Consume yourself, don't wait, there's no waiting now for your lips of moonstone. Consume yourself, you in your flame, I in mine, and love me for the love that could not wait for you, love me for what you and I contain of blossom or stone: we will always draw life from all we did not share: the shoulder upon which a rose could find no peace, the flower consumed in its own burning."
-From Ode to the Poets of the People: "Natural poets of the earth... from the ancient heart of a people you are born, and it's from there you come by your voices... he was there singing among the dead, Homer was his name or Pastor Perez or Reinaldo Donoso.... these, the poets of my people, wandering poor among the poor, maintained a smile throughout their songs, ironically judging exploiters, relating the misery of the miner and the restless fate of the soldier. These, the poets of my people, guitars battered and eyes skilled at discerning what survives, kept a rose in their song and paraded it through the alleys so that it would be known that life will not always be sad."
-From Ode to Poverty: "Poverty, you followed me through barracks and hospitals, through peace and war. When I fell ill, a knock at the door: It wasn't the doctor; Poverty entered again.... Now, Poverty, I follow you... Alongside every poor person, you will find me singing, under every hospital sheet you will run into my song.... Other poets in times past called you Saint, they venerated your cloak, they fed upon vapors and they vanished. I defy you... I with others, yes others, many others..."
-From Ode to Wine: "Drink, and remember in each drop of gold or cup of topaz or spoonful of purple how autumn worked to fill the vessels with wine, and through the rituals of his concerns let the unsung man learn how to remember the earth and his obligations, how to propagate the canticle of the grape."
May 30, 2025
Really beautiful poems ! I have always wanted to read some Pablo & we saw his old whare in Madrid on a history tour so that was the encouragement I needed ! Want to read more of them !!
November 9, 2021
My hunger struggles with slow twilights.
But the night comes and begins to sing in me,
the moon begins to spin its wheel of dreams.
This collection of early poems is from Chilean-born Pablo Neruda. Although his styles vary slightly, the most successful pieces are housed in the section entitled “Veinte Poemas de Amor…” These poems in particular are sensuous, desperate, and passionate – all characteristics one would hope for when describing love. The book also contains illustrations from artist Lucas Johnson; pen and ink drawings with a Surrealist, Imagist style.
But the night comes and begins to sing in me,
the moon begins to spin its wheel of dreams.
This collection of early poems is from Chilean-born Pablo Neruda. Although his styles vary slightly, the most successful pieces are housed in the section entitled “Veinte Poemas de Amor…” These poems in particular are sensuous, desperate, and passionate – all characteristics one would hope for when describing love. The book also contains illustrations from artist Lucas Johnson; pen and ink drawings with a Surrealist, Imagist style.
August 17, 2018
86 page book. Finished in an hour in lazy summer eve while waiting for Avi to come home. Book is really good. All poems are named ‘ode to the...’ like ode to the wine, ode to the restlessness etc etc. it was interesting.
January 11, 2017
First time with Neruda. I found it very beautiful tho a bit odd with the translation which could have just been an error with the ebook.
October 3, 2021
Odes by a master
This books is a collection of odes written by Pablo Neruda. A good collection of poe mom s lick g me wanting g to read moe.
This books is a collection of odes written by Pablo Neruda. A good collection of poe mom s lick g me wanting g to read moe.
October 11, 2023
Love this little collection. It was great to start me out on Neruda. So much brilliance and hope in these odes. Can’t wait to read more.
March 15, 2017
I was not a fan of how the translations were formatted within the ebook. I probably would've enjoyed the poems more had I not had to skip through so much.
July 20, 2021
this book did not stir me up, i was expecting a bit more. though i liked ‘the invisible man’ and ‘ode to wine’ better than the rest of them. also, i’m looking forward to read his love poems. :)
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October 14, 2025infinitesmal star, within the metal you appeared to be interred forever: concealed, your diabolical fire.
so he is entangled and untangled
declares himself cursed
with great difficulty carries the cross
of shadows
believes himself unique
in all the world
i alone do not exist
life runs
as all rivers run
I salute the ancient light flowing from the earth, the eternal thread by which people and poetry are joined, it was never cut. this profound thread of stone, come from as far as the memory of man.
everything calls out
for me to speak
everything asks me
to sing and sing forever
everything brims
with dreams and sounds
full of songs
and i watch the tough velvet
of night trembling
with its frozen constellations
then
feel rising through my soul
the wave of mysteries
of childhood
the weeping in corners
the sad adolescence
i cannot
live without life
be a man without mankind
and i hurry and i hear and i see
and i sing
for the stars
have nothing to do with me
I trample your pale flags wherever they are raised. Other poets in times past called you saint, they venerated your cloak, they fed upon vapors and they vanished. I defy you, with tough verses I batter your face, I deport you and I exile you. I with others, yes others, many others, we are going to banish you from earth to the moon so that there you remain cold and incarcerated, watching with one eye the loaves and clusters of fruit that will cloak the earth tomorrow.
so he is entangled and untangled
declares himself cursed
with great difficulty carries the cross
of shadows
believes himself unique
in all the world
i alone do not exist
life runs
as all rivers run
I salute the ancient light flowing from the earth, the eternal thread by which people and poetry are joined, it was never cut. this profound thread of stone, come from as far as the memory of man.
everything calls out
for me to speak
everything asks me
to sing and sing forever
everything brims
with dreams and sounds
full of songs
and i watch the tough velvet
of night trembling
with its frozen constellations
then
feel rising through my soul
the wave of mysteries
of childhood
the weeping in corners
the sad adolescence
i cannot
live without life
be a man without mankind
and i hurry and i hear and i see
and i sing
for the stars
have nothing to do with me
I trample your pale flags wherever they are raised. Other poets in times past called you saint, they venerated your cloak, they fed upon vapors and they vanished. I defy you, with tough verses I batter your face, I deport you and I exile you. I with others, yes others, many others, we are going to banish you from earth to the moon so that there you remain cold and incarcerated, watching with one eye the loaves and clusters of fruit that will cloak the earth tomorrow.
September 29, 2014
Sudah lama saya tidak membaca buku puisi. Ini pertama kalinya saya berkenalan dengan Pablo Neruda. Saya terpesona dengan kata-katanya, dengan caranya memandang dunia dan segala kesedihan di dalam tulisannya. Sudah lama dan saya lupa kapan sebuah puisi bisa menggetarkan pembaca seperti saya.
Saya senang mengetahui ternyata tidak banyak yang membaca buku ini, khususnya di Indonesia. Seperti yang dikatakan Haruki Murakami, "If you only read books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking."
Saya senang mengetahui ternyata tidak banyak yang membaca buku ini, khususnya di Indonesia. Seperti yang dikatakan Haruki Murakami, "If you only read books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking."
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July 10, 2013"This great world poet has been speaking truth to power for a least three generations unto this very day because translators like William Pitt Root have understood and lucidly brought these humane poems of fraternal love into countless languages." - Robert Bonazzi, San Antonio, Texas
This book was reviewed in the July 2013 issue of World Literature Today. Read the full review by visiting our website: http://bit.ly/13A0thG
This book was reviewed in the July 2013 issue of World Literature Today. Read the full review by visiting our website: http://bit.ly/13A0thG
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July 4, 2014Well, what can you say about Neruda? Of course it was wonderful. This is the first book I ordered via Kindle, however, and I was not happy with the format. The book has both the Spanish and English translations of each poem, but somehow Kindle managed to scramble them, instead of one on one page and the other on the next. Needless to say, this detracted from the experience of reading the poems somewhat. However, I enjoyed these early poems, especially "Ode to Gloom," and I recommend the book.
December 17, 2013
Nice...but I prefer his love poems.
July 12, 2014
Um livro com belíssimas poesias!
July 14, 2015
Delightful emancipation of the imagination.
November 27, 2016
Neruda supposedly thought his poems should be like wine poured into the glasses of other languages. This particular translation did a beautiful job of keeping the wine fresh and heady.
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August 22, 2017I finally checked it out from the library again and forced myself to finish it. I'm not leaving a rating, because I know any issues are purely mine, not the poets. I abhor poetry. The only reason I forced my way through this was to satisfy the 2017 Book Riot Read Harder challenge prompt for translated poetry. I did not enjoy this at all and am just glad to be done.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews